Today's Paper

Singur industrialisation must continue: Biman Bose

KOLKATA: Left Front chairman Biman Bose on Saturday urged the West Bengal government to continue with its industrialisation programme in Singur, saying that this should be done to accommodate the local youth who had taken training in various trades in anticipation of an industrial project.

“They have been trained for months, selected and now they are deeply frustrated, the State government should see how they can be accommodated… the agenda of industrialising this area should go on,” he told a press conference.

“It is sad to see the exit of the Tatas from Singur, but other projects could be tried out here.” Industry Minister Nirupam Sen on Friday said that State government owned the land acquired at Singur and there was no question of returning it.

Mr. Bose also wanted a mass campaign to expose the people who had indulged in destructive politics, spelling the doom of the project. At a pressmeet elsewhere in the city, Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said that the withdrawal by the Tatas from Singur was a victory for a people’s movement. She also said that all industrialists were welcome to invest in West Bengal and “it is myth that the industrialisation process will be halted due to one individual ….”

Mr. Bose said that while the TMC had repeatedly been called for talks over the last two years they had refused to come to the table, choosing the path of agitation instead. Even an appeal by veteran leader Jyoti Basu fell on deaf ears. He mentioned in this context that the voice of a majority of people was throttled by the Opposition and a project was derailed although 11,000 out of the total 12,000 land owners had given a thumbs up to the project. Mr. Bose also criticised the Congress for speaking in one voice with the TMC.

He said that India-U.S. nuclear deal would impact the country’s sovereignty.